Pai 2018

"Pai" means "father" in the Gallego language, and the 2018 Pai, a pure Albariño, is the evolution of a wine that years ago had been called Edición Especial. This is a mellower wine. In 2011, Albamar started making this without malolactic, but in the past, the wines had malo, so this is a little like the original wine, a coupage of wines with and without malolactic (like his father used to do), looking for a little more balance and unctuosity, with a little more weight. This may be a bit different every year, achieved from a different blend, but in 2018, it was a blend of the Albariño from a new 2,500-liter oak foudre and a second use 500-liter foudre, but with malolactic, plus a 2,000-liter stainless steel tank without malolactic. This gave the wine a little more weight in the fresher and more citrus 2018 vintage. It has more volume and weight than the Albamar and a creamy touch from the malo and the oak. If has the classical saltiness, but the acidity is mellower. This made up some 5,000 liters that filled around 6,500 bottles.